Cancellation notices will be going out next week informing landlords and tenants currently in disputes that there will be no more face-to-face tribunal hearings in Northern Ontario, according to John Wilson, president of the Near North Landlords Association.

Issues will now be settled over the telephone.

Wilson said the reason is because there are no adjudicators from Bracebridge to Hudson Bay.

“I was flabbergasted when I heard the news,” he said. “Can you imagine going through court proceedings this way? How do you evaluate body language, how do you cross-examine and how do you even know you’re speaking to the tenant over the telephone?

Adjudicators with the Landlord Tenant Board help resolve disputes between landlords and tenants through mediation or adjudication, resolve eviction applications from co-ops, provide information to landlords and tenants about their rights and responsibilities under the Residential Tenancies Act.

“We use to have two adjudicators that serviced the north – one lived in North Bay and the other lived in Sudbury, but one is on sick leave and not returning and the contract for the other adjudicator hasn’t been renewed,” Wilson told The Nugget Saturday.

“Therefore there will no longer be any face-to-face tribunal hearings and they will now be done by telephone.”

Wilson, who says he’s attended his fair share of tribunal hearings due to tenants not paying their rent and fleeing the property or those who have caused extensive damage to a rental unit, said the process is setting a dangerous precedent.

He said the average wait time to get a hearing date is more than five-and-a-half months and with this new development it’s only going to be longer.

“When people are at risk of losing their property because of unpaid rent they don’t have a choice but to take matters into their own hands. I know landlords who are now shutting off the power and hydro in the home forcing those living there out.”

Wilson said many property owners facing bankruptcy don’t have an alternative choice.

He said he’s contacted Nipissing MPP and Finance Minister Vic Fedeli’s office to request an emergency meeting to discuss the issue and find a solution.

A notice has been posted on the Social Justice Tribunals Ontario’s website, alerting the public the Landlord and Tenant Board is experiencing a shortage of adjudicators which is affecting the board’s ability to meet its service standards.

“As a result, you may experience a longer than usual number of days before a hearing can take place.”